Support, limits and time away

If gambling is affecting your life

Gambling can cause financial and personal harm. Warning signs include spending more time or money than intended, chasing losses, concealing activity, borrowing to gamble, missing essential payments or finding it hard to stop. You do not need to wait for a particular loss amount before seeking help.

If you are in immediate danger or at risk of harming yourself, contact your local emergency or crisis service. Account settings are not a substitute for urgent help. A trusted person can help you take the next step and protect essential spending.

Limits are barriers, not a promise of safety

Deposit limits restrict funding under the account's rules. Spending, loss or wagering limits can measure different things, so read what the selected control actually caps. A deposit cap does not necessarily describe all stakes placed using an existing balance.

Time limits and reality checks can make a session's duration visible. Cooling-off and time-out controls can provide a break. The availability, scope and delay for a change vary by service and jurisdiction; read the confirmation for the actual account.

Set limits before play rather than revising them to recover losses. Keep money needed for rent, food, bills, debt payments and other essentials outside gambling. Do not borrow to gamble or treat it as income or an investment.

Self-exclusion needs the right scope

A game-category block can leave other games available. A product block can leave another product on the same account accessible. A full account exclusion and a multi-operator scheme can have broader but still defined coverage.

Read our exclusion-scope guide to understand the questions to ask. If you need to stop all gambling, a narrow restriction may not be sufficient. Independent support can help you choose appropriate barriers.

Remaining cash and an exclusion are separate issues. Ask the operator how to handle an existing balance without restoring play. A bonus expiry should never become a reason to postpone a break.

International support

Gambling Therapy provides international support resources for people affected by their own gambling or someone else's. Its website has information about support options and their availability. Regional organisations can add local help and recognised exclusion schemes.

Use a support organisation's current official instructions rather than a copied phone number or schedule from an old casino review. Support coverage, language and opening times can differ.

United Kingdom: Gamstop Online

Gamstop Online is a free self-exclusion service for UK residents covering participating Great Britain-licensed online gambling services. It has stated minimum exclusion periods and cannot be removed during the selected minimum period. It does not block every gambling site worldwide.

Read the current service information and terms for eligibility and coverage. If you live elsewhere, use the recognised resources for your own jurisdiction.

Add practical barriers where available

Consider account exclusions, an applicable multi-operator scheme, device blocking and your bank's gambling-payment controls. Each addresses a different route and has its own limits. Keep marketing reduced or blocked where the service offers that option.

No barrier guarantees that harm cannot occur. Human support remains useful alongside technical controls. If you keep moving to another account or product after setting a limit, seek broader help rather than viewing it as a new opportunity to play.

For family and friends

You can seek support when another person's gambling affects you. Protect your own finances and essentials, and avoid sharing accounts, cards or credentials to fund their play. Gambling Therapy has resources for people affected by someone else's gambling.

Help does not require you to settle an operator dispute or recover losses first. The decision to step away can begin now, even when an account still has an unresolved payment question.